View full sizeCourtesy of Ugarte FamilyMarcos Ugarte, 14, (right) and his father, Eduardo, rushed from their Troutdale home Monday night to help a neighboring family whose residence caught fire. The teen climbed a ladder, while his dad held it steady, and retrieved an 8-year-old boy trapped in a second floor bedroom.

When Marcos Ugarte walked the halls of Gresham High School on Tuesday, he said he received a lot more attention than he expected.

"I can't say I really consider myself a hero," said Ugarte. "I think anyone would have done what I did."

Ugarte was working on homework with his father, Eduardo, at about 9 p.m. Monday, when the two heard screams outside. They checked and initially saw nothing. Then Ugarte said he noticed an orange-red hue and saw flames from four houses away in the 2500 block of Southwest Hewitt Avenue.

The father and son ran to the burning home, where they found You "Alex" Ma; Ma's wife, Suzanne; his mother, Yim; and 3-year-old son, Nathan, outside.

But another child, Cody, 8, was still inside, the family said. The boy had locked himself in his grandmother's bedroom after he spotted the flames across the hall. You Ma had tried twice but failed to retrieve his son.

"I've never, ever felt heat like that," Ma said Tuesday. "I couldn't see anything and I thought there was nothing I could do for my son."

Eduardo Ugarte said his son offered to run inside to rescue the boy. But the father told him to stay outside and went into the house himself.

Eduardo Ugarte said he ran up the stairs, then crawled to the locked door, but couldn't reach the boy before smoke and flames forced him out.

Meanwhile, Marcos Ugarte got a ladder from Ma's mother and placed it under the second-story window where the boy was trapped. His father held the ladder as he climbed.

"My instincts just took over," the teen said. "I saw the grandmother crying, I felt so bad for them, and I just wanted to help."

View full sizeEverton Bailey Jr./The OregonianA Troutdale father credits a 14-year-old neighbor with saving his 8-year-old son from the second story of his burning home Monday night. The teen used a ladder to reach the boy and pull him to safety. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Marcos Ugarte said he knocked off the window screen and spotted the boy inside, then guided the boy back to the ground.

Cody Ma was taken to a hospital for a medical evaluation and released. Battalion Chief Mark Maunder of the Gresham fire department said other people were treated at the scene for possible smoke inhalation.

The fire's cause was not known Tuesday.

The Ugartes said they waved to the Ma family in passing from time to time, but didn't know them very well before the fire. The two planned to visit the family Tuesday evening.

Eduardo Ugarte admitted that his son's act of courage didn't sink in with him and his wife until they were safely back home.

"We've taught all of our kids to do what's right in the face of adversity," said the father, who also has an 18-year-old daughter and a 13-year-old son. "This doesn't mean we expect them to climb ladders into homes that are on fire, but if they see a problem, we expect them to do what they can to help.